Deleted AppData and Lost DaVinci Resolve Projects: Check the Project Library Before Scanning the Disk
TL;DR:
To recover missing DaVinci Resolve 20 projects after deleting Windows AppData, prioritize restoring an intact project library or .drp backup from the Recycle Bin or Blackmagic Cloud before running disk scans.
● Halt all activity on the affected system drive to prevent permanent data loss caused by overwriting or SSD TRIM operations if the local project library was deleted without backups.
● Use Recoverit File Recovery to scan local storage for deleted files only if no library backup survives, ensuring you save any recovered data to a separate drive.
● Do not confuse source media recovery with project restoration, as recovering video files will not recreate your edit, and recovering isolated database fragments does not guarantee a loadable Resolve project.
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In this DaVinci Resolve recovery case, a Windows user deleted AppData and then found their Resolve 20 projects missing. That is not automatically the same as deleting one .drp file: local Resolve projects can live inside a project library, so the first task is to restore an intact library or project backup.
Check the Recycle Bin and Existing Project Backups First
If the deleted folders are still in the Windows Recycle Bin, restore them before opening and modifying Resolve again. If the projects were stored in Blackmagic Cloud, Blackmagic Cloud's project-library guidance provides library backups and a restore workflow that creates a restored project library without overwriting the current one.
For a specific project, Blackmagic Design support also recommends exporting important projects as .drp files. If an intact DRP or project-library backup exists on another drive, import or reconnect that copy before attempting deleted-file recovery.
Recovery Decision
- An intact project library or backup exists: Restore or reconnect it in Resolve.
- A previously exported DRP is missing: Treat that exported file as a local deleted-file case.
- The only local project library was deleted with AppData: Preserve the system drive and avoid creating more data before recovery.
Use Disk Recovery Only for Local Data That Is Truly Gone
If no library backup or DRP survives and the original drive remains readable, Recoverit File Recovery can scan the local storage for deleted files. Save results to another drive. Recoverit cannot guarantee reconstruction of a complete Resolve project database from isolated fragments, and an SSD may become unrecoverable after overwrite or TRIM.
Key Boundary:
Do not confuse a missing project-library database with a missing video file. Recovering source media does not recreate the Resolve edit, and recovering database fragments does not guarantee a loadable project.